How to Do Pest Control With a Vacuum Cleaner

If you own a vacuum, you can become your own pest controller for the pennies it takes to run your vacuum, with the advantage that this is a non-toxic method for removing pests from your home. Your vacuum is the secret to removing and breaking the ongoing cycle of spider and insect populations in the house. Here are a few pest-by-pest tips.

Steps

A vacuum with a hose is most practical for sucking up bugs from irregular surfaces and overhead. A vacuum with a rotating brush is most effective at removing bugs and, more importantly, scraps upon which they feed, from carpets. Canister vacuums generally have a hose and some permit attaching a rotating-brush head; many uprights allow switching between the main brush head and a hose. A HEPA filter greatly reduces airborne particulate count and can be good for allergies, but replacements are not cheap.^{[1]XExpert SourceChikezie Onyianta
Pest Control SpecialistExpert Interview. 1 April 2021.} Simple bagless vacuums clog expensive filters quickly. Disposable bags, which are cheap, or vortex-style dirt separators extend their useful life. A vacuum with a long hose, and extension tubes, is best for hard-to-reach areas.
Since the vacuum is your way to kill the bugs. Be sure to configure it to maximum power. There is usually a knob for vacuum suction power. Turning on the vacuum should be easy. You will need to either click the foot pedal or turn the switch to on position.
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Vacuum your house regularly and thoroughly to make bugs unwelcome. If there's nothing to eat, they won't come in and won't multiply if they occasionally do come in. Keep food in sealed containers like the refrigerator and jars, vacuum dust from carpets, corners and shelves, and vacuum or mop hard floors. Clean floors under items where dirt may settle, including sinks, refrigerators, and especially stoves.
- This is much easier and more effective than trying to keep up with chasing bugs one by one.
- Don't pull on a gas stove or pull hard on a refrigerator with an ice maker to move it lest you damage the supply line. Try a vacuum cleaner extension, or temporarily removing the drawer under the stove, to get under them.
- For vacuuming things other than the floor, use a simple nozzle without electrical or moving parts which has been taken off the vacuum and cleaned. A brush nozzle generally won't scratch.
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Deal with spiders using your vacuum cleaner. A vacuum cleaner can be used to cut down the spider population immediately and vacuuming out the webs will stop the increase of spiders in future days and months. In removing a spiderweb, you remove the spider's home, the nursery for future baby spiders, and the spider's grocery store. (On occasion the spider web itself is actually consumed by the spider!) This is a pretty big deal since one of those egg sacks can have 300 little baby spiders in it. While most never make it to maturity, imagine roughly half becoming egg laying females. That's 150 times 300 eggs!
- Vacuum up every spiderweb you can find. By removing the web, you're removing all the comforts that the spider needs to survive and repopulate.
- Use an extended vacuum end of a canister vacuum cleaner to reach high places.
- A hand-held vacuum is useful for the nooks and crannies where spiders tend to hide.
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Deal with Indian meal moths and other pantry pests. Moths flutter around, fall into your food and drink and can be costly to get rid of.
- Vacuum cracks between benches, counter tops, and under the refrigerator. Food particles from grains filter into all your cabinets from the counter tops; these particles find a resting place in the tightest cracks and float downward toward the fan under your refrigerator. These areas need a thorough vacuuming from time to time.
- Vacuum the pantry shelves where the food is stored.
- Look to the place where the ceiling and wall meet. Indian meal moths climb the wall and spin their silken cocoons at that point. At first glance they may look like spider webs, but webs or cocoons, get that vacuum out and suck them away!
- Dispose of the vacuum bag or contents outside in the trash can so that the pests are not reintroduced into the house.
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Vacuum where your pets are fed. If you feed your pets inside, keep in mind that a major source of pantry pests is dry pet food and bird feed.
- Be sure to vacuum pet feeding areas and pet food storage areas often.
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Fight cockroaches with your vacuum.^{[2]XResearch source} There are several types of cockroaches that may like your home. The first cockroach gets there through various means - flying through open windows, walking in the door but the most notorious the German cockroach has to be transported via your grocery bag, the cute little dresser from the garage sale or even in that sugar you borrowed from the neighbors. As a general rule, cockroaches lay about 30 eggs in what is called an ootheca or egg purse. Upon nearing maturity, these are dropped anywhere the roach might be.
- Due to airborne particulates from the cockroach fecal matter, the cockroach exoskeleton and various body parts left behind cockroaches can be a direct cause of respiratory ailments. A non-HEPA vacuum may exacerbate the problem, so only use a vacuum with a HEPA filter. A vacuum cleaner is particularly useful in the control of roaches because the ootheca is readily visible and quickly vacuumed up.
- Look for the ootheca in drawers, on shelves, under cabinets or anywhere cockroaches my be living. Vacuum roaches, ootheca, and all.
- After vacuuming, wash the area with strong soap.^{[3]XResearch source}
- Dispose of the bag or contents direct into a trash can outside that is going to be collected shortly, so that you don't re-introduce the pests.
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Vacuum up stink bugs. If you've had an invasion of stink bugs in your home, the vacuum is a great way to collect them quickly without getting the stench all over you from accidental squashing. Simply vacuum them up from wherever they're resting (usually walls and windows), and dispose of appropriately.
- Stink bugs can also be vacuumed off exterior walls if your vacuum cleaner extends that far.
- Other bugs you can remove this way include Western conifer seed bug and the box elder bug.
Vacuum the mattresses and pillows of all beds in the home to reduce the dust mite population.^{[4]XResearch source} Dispose of the vacuum cleaner contents properly, in a sealed container.
^{[5]XResearch source} Be sure to vacuum under furniture as well as on the open carpet.^{[6]XExpert SourceChikezie Onyianta
Pest Control SpecialistExpert Interview. 1 April 2021.} You might also wish to add flea powder to the vacuum cleaner bag or on the carpet if this won't cause problems for your cleaner.^{[7]XResearch source} Dispose of properly.
Vacuum away silverfish.^{[8]XResearch source} Silverfish like damp conditions, so tend to be found in the kitchen and bathroom areas. Use the vacuum cleaner to remove food particles and silverfish eggs.
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Remove ladybugs from your home. Ladybugs can congregate in numbers large enough to infest your home over the winter break. While they're beneficial insects in the garden, disturbed ladybugs can emit a bad odor and can cause allergic reactions in susceptible people. If you're experiencing a problem with them, vacuuming them up in a fresh bag or vacuum container and then depositing them somewhere far away in the garden can be one way of getting them out of the house and back into being beneficial in the garden.
- After vacuuming, place cloves in window sills and anywhere else there are cracks that they might be attracted back to.^{[9]XResearch source} You can also try wiping down with clove oil diluted with some water.
These flies tend to infest homes around August through to October and tend to cluster on high ceilings.
In all cases of using your vacuum cleaner for pest removal, always empty your vacuum cleaner and tie up the bag immediately after vacuuming, putting the bag outside in the trash. If they're not trapped inside, the spiders and insects will crawl out wherever they're left.
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Can centipedes get trapped in a vacuum cleaner or get killed in there?
Community Answer
Generally speaking, if it has to pass through a spinning fan blade, anything large like a centipede is probably not going to survive.
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How do I remove cockroaches from a vacuum cleaner?
Community Answer
Dispose of the vacuum bag and you should be roach free. As long as you separate the container from food sources, and it's sealed tightly, you wont run into the pests for a while if you've managed to remove the eggs.
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Do carpet beetles, fleas, or bed bugs lay their eggs between the top of the ceiling & wall?
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Generally no; these pests enjoy nesting toward a surface near the ground. There are rare instances; however, that this will happen, but most tend to lay their eggs between the floor and the wall.
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Tips

Consult a professional pest control technician for "eyes on" advice about ongoing pest control if you're experiencing massive pest problems that you just can't get under control alone.
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There are insect and bug catching vacuums available for purchase but your existing vacuum is just as capable, so save your money.
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Warnings

Don't ever put your bare skin in a spiderweb.
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Always wear gloves if there is a possibility of spider or insect bites.
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If you have respiratory problems always seek medical advice prior beginning any vacuuming routine.
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Vacuuming may not kill bugs. Anything dangerous should be cautiously killed first.
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